Dragnet is an American radio, television and motion picture series, enacting the cases of a dedicated Los Angeles police detective, Sergeant Joe Friday, and his partners. The show takes its name from the police term "dragnet", meaning a system of coordinated measures for apprehending criminals or suspects.
Dragnet is perhaps the most famous and influential police procedural drama in media history. The series gave audience members a feel for the boredom and drudgery, as well as the danger and heroism, of police work. Dragnetearned praise for improving the public opinion of police officers.
Actor and producer Jack Webb's aims in Dragnet were for realism and unpretentious acting. He achieved both goals, and Dragnet remains a key influence on subsequent police dramas in many media.
The show's cultural impact is such that after five decades, elements of Dragnet are familiar to those who have never seen or heard the program:
The ominous, four-note introduction to the brass and tympani theme music (titled "Danger Ahead") is instantly recognizable (though its origins date to MiklósRózsa's score for the 1946 film version of The Killers).
Another Dragnet trademark is the show's opening narration: "Ladies and gentlemen: the story you are about to hear is true. Only the names have been changed to protect the innocent." This underwent minor revisions over time. The "only" and "ladies and gentlemen" were dropped at some point, and for the television version "hear" was changed to "see". Variations on this narration have been featured in subsequent crime dramas, and in parodies of the dramas (e.g. "Only the facts have been changed to protect the guilty").
Title: 7 Of The Best
Format: DVD
Release Date: 12 Dec 2014
Artist: Dragnet
Sku: 2289418
Catalogue No: POSDVD19
Category: Visual
Disc Count: 1
Transfer Format: DVD
Video Format: Special Interest / Miscellaneous
Primary Audio: POSDVD19
Language: 0602547138729
Subtitles: Universal Music
DISC 1
1. The Big Seventeen
2. The Big Trunk
3. The Big Winchester
4. The Big Frame
5. The Big Producer
6. The Big Family
7. The Big Deal